From Fortune to The Boston Globe to top sustainability media site Triple Pundit, over the past month, Symantec has been highlighted in various prominent media outlets and reports for our corporate responsibility programs and efforts. Below we bring you highlights of a few of these, which cover a range of issues core to our CR strategy including gender diversity, cyber security skills training, and corporate volunteering.
Fortunefeatures launch of the Symantec Cyber Career Connection (SC3)
On June 24, 2014, Symantec officially launched its new signature initiative, the Symantec Cyber Career Connection (SC3), at the Clinton Global Initiative America meeting in Denver, CO. SC3 aims to address the global workforce gap in cybersecurity by training and certifying young adults in cybersecurity and assisting them in landing meaningful internships and jobs.
Fortune featured the launch in a June 24th article“Symantec tries to fill shortage of cybersecurity workers with $2 million donation” highlighting the shortage of cyberprofessionals and how the SC3 program will help fill this gap through training underserved youth in crucial cyber security skills.
“We are affected by the skills shortage as much as any company,” says Aled Miles, a senior vice president at Symantec. “We’re constantly on the lookout for early talent. It affects us and it affects our customers.”
Boston Globe Highlights Symantec Service Corps
In a feature in The Boston Globe on corporate volunteerism, the Symantec Service Corps’ Peru project was named by Pyxera Global as one of a growing number of pro bono corporate service programs offering employees a chance to apply their skills abroad, and organizations a chance to gain valuable support they otherwise may not be able to afford.
In all, 39 companies worldwide have started some form of corporate service program, according to Pyxera Global, a Washington, D.C., nonprofit that connects companies with international pro bono projects that fit their corporate objectives. Accenture workers helped connect retailers selling food and personal hygiene products with saleswomen in rural Bangladesh; Symantec Corp. employees created a marketing strategy for a Peruvian nonprofit that works with victims of domestic violence; in August, employees from IBM and Dow Chemical Co. will team up to improve water quality and sanitation in Ethiopia.
By the end of the year, more than 9,000 employees will have participated in one of these projects in 88 countries, according to Pyxera data from 26 of the 39 companies — up from just a few hundred employees in five countries eight years ago.
Symantec Featured in UK Digital Skills Taskforce Launch Video and Report
The UK Digital Skills Taskforce is an independent taskforce of leading experts developed to highlight practical solutions that enable UK business to meet persistent skills gaps by identifying, developing and using home-grown talent. The taskforce conducted research with hundreds of organizations to understand how best to develop local talent to meet future occupational needs in the UK. The results were published in the taskforce’s report Digital Skills for Tomorrow's World.
Symantec’s Reading office hosted an event for the report, contributed expertise, and was one of few organizations highlighted in the report and the report’s launch video. In the video and report, Director of Security Strategy at Symantec, Sian Johnson, emphasizes that “people just don’t realize how great and varied a career there is in technology or in digital, how much you need digital skills to work in any industry now.” Additionally, she discusses that people often have a preconceived image of a technology job, but don’t realize how varied technology career paths can really be.
Triple Pundit Series: Symantec Corporate Responsibility and Internet Security
Top sustainability media site Triple Pundit published an article on cloud security, “Storing Data in the Cloud: How Safe is It?,” as the latest installment of the Triple Pundit Symantec series on CR and Internet security. The article reviews the security risks associated with the growth in cloud adoption and smart connected devices, and the need for cybersecurity from vendors such as Symantec. A quote from Symantec VP of Corporate Responsibility Cecily Joseph highlights information protection as central to corporate responsibility.
Data security and protection, as well as assuring personal privacy, is inherently an issue of corporate social responsibility (CSR). As Cecily Joseph, Symantec vice president of Corporate Responsibility, told 3p: “At Symantec, we enable people and businesses to enjoy the connected world by protecting their most important assets – their memories and data.
Symantec considers the protection of information – whether it’s in the cloud, on your mobile or desktop – central to the responsibility of corporations in this digital age. Our customers trust us with the data they capture, share and save online. Trust is at the heart of the relationships we cultivate, and the responsibility we have to our customers, partners and communities.”
Blog for Female Professionals Calls Out Symantec for Diversity Leadership
VitaminW, a blog for delivering thoughtful news to professional women, recently ran an article outlining the steps technology companies should take to address gender diversity. Symantec is cited as an example of a company that makes diversity a priority among its leadership, and Symantec’s Cecily Joseph is quoted on how the company pursued its goal for bringing more women on Symantec’s Board of Directors:
Make it a Top Priority
Research shows companies serious about gender equity make it a company priority with the message coming from the CEO. A recent example involves Symantec’s decision to set a 30 percent goal for the number of women on their board of directors, acknowledging that a diverse workforce is essential to exceptional products and performance.
Cecily Joseph, VP of Corporate Responsibility stated, “[Symantec's Board of Directors] directed a search firm to include women candidates and expanded criteria beyond CEO, Board experience and our networks to focus on candidates with international, governmental and financial expertise and who could bring both age and cultural diversity to the team.” In a relatively short time two candidates were identified and Symantec met its goal.
We're always excited to share some of the work we're doing here at Symantec, and always love to hear from you! Comment here, or reach us at CR@Symantec.com.
Lora Phillips is Senior Manager, Global Corporate Responsibility, at Symantec.